Hospital defends discharge request

Hospital defends discharge request

Nawat: Issue went viral
Nawat: Issue went viral

Piyavate Hospital blamed miscommunication for an incident that went viral concerning a request to have coronavirus-infected TV host Nawat Itsaragrisil move out of the hospital.

Nawat complained about the request on Facebook Live.

The stream went viral on Wednesday after the founder of the Miss Grand beauty contest broke down in tears, claiming a doctor had ordered him to leave the hospital within 24 hours.

He also complained about a CCTV camera set up to help monitor him.

Following the stream, it was rumoured that the doctor who asked Nawat to leave was dismissed by the hospital.

The stream caught the attention of netizens, who expressed their dissatisfaction with the alleged behaviour of the doctor who requested Nawat to leave.

Dr Witit Artavatkun, president of Piyavate Hospital, denied the rumour and said that the TV show host was asked to leave the hospital because his condition had improved and that the hospital needed his bed to serve other patients infected with Covid-19.

"The hospital didn't sack the doctor but he feels uncomfortable over the issue so the hospital let him rest while the hospital launched an internal probe into the issue," he said.

Dr Witit said Nawat was hospitalised on July 3 for Covid-19 treatment. His condition gradually improved, Dr Witit said.

Due to the severity of the current situation, many patients -- mostly the elderly, pregnant women and children -- are waiting for hospital beds to become available, he said.

To clear beds for these these patients, those with improved conditions are asked to transfer to hospital-cum-hotels, or hospitels, for further treatment or undergo home isolation, he said.

"It was a miscommunication on both sides," Dr Witit said.

Dr Witit said Nawat was discharged after he requested on Thursday night to continue his treatment at home using telemedicine.

A medical team will monitor Nawat's condition, he said.

The doctor said Nawat's blood oxygen level had improved enough to discharge him.

While Nawat was recovering, he was given the option to have oxygen support, Dr Witit said.

That's why people saw tubes during Nawat's Facebook Live stream, he said.

As for the CCTV camera issue, Dr Witit said the hospital must activate its CCTV cameras to monitor the condition of patients, noting that it requires their permission first.

Photography at the hospital is actually prohibited, but the hospital did not stop Nawat's stream.

He said, however, that Nawat must take responsibility for his statement because it affected other people.

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